A Philadelphia Moment

Joining with Soulemama Today.  What special moment did you have?

Nuby Nibbler!

Between teething and exploring solids, Maura has been using the nibbler non-stop lately.  We even took it camping!  You know why?  There's something different about this nibbler.  

It comes with a cover!  Isn't that ingenious?!  We aren't limited to using this nibbler at home anymore.  I can cut up small bits of fruit and bring it with us when we are out and about on the go!  

I also really like the way it opens and closes.  It has a squeeze and twist locking system that's easy for me to open and close it, but difficult for Maura.  Patrick, my 4 year old gadget man, hasn't even figured this one out!  

Something else I really like about this nibbler is that the mesh inserts are really easy to clean.  I've tried mesh feeders in the past and gave up simply because I couldn't get them clean.  This one cleans up really easily.  I can even replace the mesh on them if they get too grungy!  It's a nice option to have.   

It's also really easy for her to grasp with its ergonomic handle.  Maura still has some fine motor issues and this helps a lot.  

We also use it a lot for ice.  Maura seems to break multiple teeth at once.  Of course, we have the typical freezer teethers, but they seem to get soft/warm so easy right now in the summer.  Having the nibbler allows me to add crushed ice to it when she wants it.  I don't mind her having it in the living room either because after all, it's just water!  

You can find the nibbler at the following places:

 I did not receive any compensation for this review, however I did receive samples from Nuby to review!

Camp Parker

We got away to the woods recently with our neighbors and dear friends, the Parkers.  It was a long time coming and well worth the wait.  We weren't sure how we'd fit into the whole dynamic of Parker camping, but it worked out wonderfully. 

The campfire conversations were vibrant and fun.  Patrick and Kara played together just as we knew they would.  The weather was perfection.  It was the perfect opportunity to just disconnect for a few days with folks we really love.  

Hopefully we'll have the opportunity to camp again with them before the winter chill sets in.

Embracing the Change

It's happening...the mornings have been cooler, almost as if to let me know that Autumn really is coming...and I'm doing something too!  I'm embracing it!  I'm thinking that maybe jeans and sweaters and orange and brown aren't so bad...that maybe the smell of fire and maybe even some fire of our own, and fall camping might just be in order.  There are some good things about its coming you know...

In the meantime, I'm still savoring the bits of summer...

A Sunset Moment

{Joining Soulemama This Week}

Summer Slipping By

The orb spiders are out.  They spend the evenings spinning giant webs in the yard as it begins to get dark just before eight o'clock these days. Oh the signs that Autumn is on its way.  It's about this time of year that I want to hold on to every speck of summer with all of my might, and I know I can't.  It's going to slip on, no matter which way I look at it.  So for now, I'll just savor the last bits of summer.  I'll enjoy the last two weeks and bask in the summer sun before it sweeps me off my feet and right into Autumn.

Nuby Infafeeder! Success!

One of Maura's biggest challenges so far, oddly, has been using a cup of any sort. Yes, I know, you can tell me I did it to myself.  I remember distinctly telling the doctors at CHOP that she had no need to take a bottle, that I would be solely nursing her anyway, but here we are at 15 months, and guess who is still solely nursing that dear child?!

We've tried quite an array of sippy cups.  She's very resistant to them!  So when my Softflex Infafeeder arrived from Nuby, I was very excited to give it a try!  After all, they also sent me a variety of interchangeable tops for it!! The top it comes with is a spoon.  It's actually wonderful to use with baby food because it's soft in her mouth.  I wish I had this earlier in our difficult days of feeding purees!! It's shape is so natural that Maura just know what to do with it!

We also use it for learning how to drink from a cup.  There are several other tops to choose from, so we went with the spout.  So far, Maura has taken to biting sippy cups.  Having a vast array of cups from Patrick to try, I feel like we've tried them all.  When I handed this one to Maura, she had no problem grabbing it and getting it to her mouth.  The soft sides of the Infafeeder make it easy for her to pick up.

The other day, our speech therapist came out to see Maura and she LOVED the cup!  She hadn't seen it before, but there were a variety of things we liked about it:

- It's assistive - The bottle itself was made of silicone.  As Maura drinks, I can help her along by squeezing the sides of it to get a sip to her when she tries to "bite" it.

- The valve is soft - muchlike a breast, it has a soft wide valve.  This helps Maura get the idea of "latching" on to it.

- A variety of nipples and tops can be used for it! Starting with a bottle?  No problem!  It easily transitions to a soft spoon that feels familiar on gums, as well as a variety of sippy spouts!

- The shape is a familiar shape that transfers eventually to regular Nuby sippy cups.  I love how everything transitions so seamlessly!

We won't be going anywhere without our Nuby cup.  It's really been the one that's worked best so far.

You can pick up a Nuby Infafeeder right here:

August is Slipping By....

I looked at the calendar this afternoon, and it caught me by surprise.  Really?!  How is it that there are just three more weeks until Labor Day?  Did my summer really fly by that fast?  I swear, it was just the Fourth of July!  How did this happen?!   I'm sad...and I vow to make the most of every moment left this summer!

Four

When I woke up this morning, I heard his voice downstairs already.  How does he even have the self control to not open those presents, I thought.  He'd asked for it for months.  It was the only thing he wanted - The Green Christmas Train.

You see, Patrick turned four today.  Four.  I can hardly believe it myself!  Three was pretty rough for us.  As a family, three was rough, so I can't imagine how he trudged through, but he did! And here we are, on the other side of Four!  Oh, I suppose that sometimes, I'll see three come out to say hi.  After all, as Sandra Cisneros said in Eleven, our age is inside of us, like the rings of a tree.  Yeah, I'm sure he'll still whine a bit, like when he was three, and I'm sure he'll want me to hold him too, like when he was a baby!! And that's OK, because Four is here.  I'm excited for Four!  

Oh, I wonder what Four will bring.  Will he still love trains as much as always?  Will he actually want to color pictures?  Will he write all of his letters and not just the letters in his name?  Will he learn his phone number?  Will he play with Maura more?  Oh, Four...you are so exciting.  I can't wait to see more of you!  

Happy Birthday to my favorite little boy, Patrick Finn!! 

Finn and Fern

So I've been keeping a little secret.  I mulled it around in my head quite a bit and started secretly sewing and making.  I decided I really wanted to try to get my Etsy shop off the ground.  It all began so simply, really...with those two children I have and love so dearly...We'll call them Finn and Fern (their middle names that work so nicely together!)  Well needless to say, I'd love to make some extra cash in my time home with them, and maybe even extend it longer than I had anticipated.

So I've been working hard to make that happen.  While we were away at Phish, we met some new friends.  My friend Maria opened up a shop selling her patterns for Waldorf dolls.  It all hit me.  I could really do this.  I make dolls!  I've been making dolls since the dawn of time! I was, after all, called the Esther Girl for a reason!  It was a doll that started it all!

These dolls are quite a bit different, but none the less, they are just as beautiful.  Each one is a combination of machine and hand stitching.  Although there is more hand stitching than machine.  They are stuffed with wool, which is known to take on the scent of the home, making it a comforting companion for any little one.  Their faces are sculpted by hand and sewn by hand.  Their hair is all wool and also attached by hand.

Each dress is lovingly handcrafted from the finest calicos I can find.  Sometimes, I love them so much, I don't even want to cut into them, but I really love how they look as dresses for these little friends!

Anyway, I've opened shop.  There are four dollies in there now, and two more are currently in the works.  I hope you'll take a minute to check them out, like us on Facebook, and Favorite our shop!  I'll also be updating a blog specifically for them here.  You might even want to take home one of my lovely dollies too!  I'd love that!!

Nuby Weaning Spoons

I've gotten picky about my spoons.  After 2 kids, I guess you just do get picky about them!  I'd saved my spoons with Patrick, but somehow, they just didn't seem to work as well for Maura.  After all, Maura is spending a bit more time in puree land than he did.  So when I needed something a little deeper, I set out to find the right one, but I ran into a problem.  Sigh...

I'd either seen the same spoons I always had that were small and shallow, or I'd see sets that included forks and knives...  Seriously?! My 15 month old needs a knife?  No...nothing to cut for her!  I just wanted a deeper baby spoon to pick up a little bit more of her purees each time!

When I got my hands on the Nuby Weaning Spoons, I was pleasantly surprised.  They were not only a little bit deeper, but they were also longer, so when I do get larger jars of baby food, the food doesn't always end up on my fingers!  They also work really well with yogurt!


The ends have a soft grip which makes them fun to hold.  Now I know that sounds silly, but I feel like we are stuck in that time period when the baby is ALWAYS eating.  She gets up, she eats, she naps, she eats, she has a snack, she plays, she eats...you *know* what I'm talking about.  It seems like they are constantly in their highchairs at one point or another, so it's nice to have a spoon with a nice grip, especially with a baby who isn't about to feed herself any time soon!

They came in 6 pack, so I was able to drop one in my diaper bag, leave one in the car, keep one at the pool, and still have some at home!  And I don't even have a bunch of random plastic baby knives laying around to go with them!  You can't beat that, now can you?

You can find these at at the following retailers online:

I did not receive any compensation for this review, however I did receive samples from Nuby to review!

Blogging for Nuby!

Having a second go round at this baby thing, I feel like I've honed my baby gear skills.  I know what I want this time.  I don't just go into the store and settle for the first thing I see.  Maura has posed me with even more challenges developmentally, with both play and eating.  So when the opportunity came along to be a Nuby Mommy Blogger, I was eager to jump right in.  I mean, why not take a look at some great products and tell you all about them?  Who wouldn't want to do that?

The other day, we got a box filled with Nuby goodness.  Can you tell Maura was quite stoked?  So right now, we are taking some time to try things out, and we'll be reporting back to you in the next few days on the goodies we got!

In the meantime, take a minute to check out Nuby over on Facebook and also on Twitter!


I did not receive any compensation for this post, although as part of this program I may receive items to sample or review.